Confessions of a Self-Abuser

Abuse is a tricky thing...

It can be blatant... or, more often than not,  it can sneak up on us in covert ways until our self-esteem has crumbled and we don't even know how we got to this sad, insecure place.

I suspect most of us have felt abused at some point in our lives, and the feelings said abuse harbors are certainly not pleasant...

But it occurred to me, as I was thinking one day, how often we abuse ourselves.

We overindulge in food, drink, sleep, and activity.  We work ourselves too hard in our careers and our workouts.  We criticize ourselves...  I mean, really, we are our own worst enemy!  And yet we get angry at others who would treat us with such disrespect!

This train of thought really shifted my approach to my diet and exercise... and to my life in general.

How can I get angry at others for treating me with the same standards (or sometimes better than) I treat myself?

So starting now, I have a new filter for all my decisions.

"In this choice, am I respecting my life and myself in the way I would want others to respect me?"

Certainly puts a new spin on that giant slice of cheesecake that keeps you from achieving your goal weight.

Or that cigarette that's polluting your lungs.

Or that neurotoxin we call "alcohol."

I'm not saying we can't indulge, but smoking, overeating, drinking too much caffeine or alcohol, pushing ourselves to exhaustion, going to bed too late... it's all just self-abuse!  And when we look at it through that lens, it certainly changes our decision making process.

How are you abusing yourself?  And more importantly, which abusive behaviors are you going to stop?